Is Mumbai prepared for the monsoon?

Monsoon showers are expected to hit the city in a day or two and the BMC is at best exuding some cautious confidence.

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Kamlesh Sutar

Aditya Aman

Mumbai

June 8, 2010

UPDATED: June 8, 2010 16:52 IST

Submerged roads, water entering homes, transport crippled - Mumbai is known to fail the monsoon test every year. But can the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), with its grand claims of preparedness, fare any better this time?

Monsoon showers are expected to hit the city in a day or two and the BMC is at best exuding some cautious confidence.

"We will try to do our best to ensure that the people don't face problems during the monsoon season. But I agree that some tasks may still be pending," says BMC Commissioner Swadheen Kshatriya.

The corporation has laid out an elaborate plan to tackle the rains. Around 200 pumps have been installed to drain out water. Automatic weather stations have been put up at 31 places.

Nine navy teams, two companies of the State Reserve Police Force and three of the National Disaster Response Force will be on standby. A round-the-clock control room will coordinate between the army, navy, police and the hospitals. Public address systems will be fitted on official cars of the ward officers.

But Kshatriya admits that these measures could just end up being on paper. "The measures have not been tested in the past few years as there hasn't been enough rainfall," he says.

Headlines Today found that a storm water drainage pump planned at a junction used by commuters coming from the Bandra-Worli Sea Link to travel towards south Mumbai was yet to be installed.

With such levels of readiness, Mumbaikars have begun preparing for the tough times ahead on their own.

"We are scared. With the first shower, we began packing off our belongings lying on the floor," says a woman.

Another resident says: "Water starts to fill my home after just 15 minutes of rainfall."

Waterlogging is just one of the concerns. The BMC says many of Mumbai's buildings may not be able to withstand the monsoons. But the civic body has no plans to ensure the safety of people living in these houses.

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